NHS football mainstay turns 70 today

Coach Moore: Long is pioneer of Northeastern

In athletics, it is unusual for any athlete, coach or anyone working for a team to stay in one place for a long period of time.

But Tommy Long has been a fixture at Northeastern High School since Northeastern was there — and before.

Long, who currently runs the clocks at Northeastern home football games, as well as some Pasquotank games and other events, turns 70 today.

“Tommy Long is a pioneer of Northeastern High School,” Northeastern football coach Antonio Moore said. “When you think of Northeastern High School, you think of Tommy Long.”

“He’s a fixture around town,” Pasquotank football coach and former Northeastern assistant David Brinson said. “Everybody knows Tommy and he’s just a good old boy.”

He’s been known around Elizabeth City for a long time. He got his start as a boy helping out with the Elizabeth City High School teams at old Memorial Field.

“He would walk over there and started helping out by lining off the field,” former Northeastern coach and AD Jerry McGee said. “His most famous job was water boy. He would line the field off and do whatever coach (Honey) Johnson and (Bob) Brooks wanted him to ... anything.”

Long eventually took on even more tasks, assisting all of the coaches through the consolidation into Northeastern High School.

“He’d be a manager during the games,” McGee said. “He’d get

them water and keep the equipment up. He’d put out the field markers. If there was anything to be done, Tommy Long would do it. Amazing.”

When McGee returned to work at NHS, he and others worked with Long to get him on the road.

“He had never had a driver’s license,” McGee said. “We tutored him and trained him and everything until we got him a driver’s license.”

Once Long got his license, he put it to good use, once again helping the kids of Northeastern.

“He’d go through the project and pick up all the kids who played football at Northeastern in his area and he’d take them back to school,” McGee said. “He’d take the dummies out and the blocking sleds. He’d carry the water out at practice, then he’d take the boys home after practice. So all of the boys knew him and loved him.”

That is something that has carried through the years, so much so that both football coaches in the county went to school while Long was helping the program.

“I’ve known Tommy ever since I was in high school,” Brinson said. “He’s always been real dependable and a lot of help. He’s done a lot of good for the school system.”

“I remember when I played here, Tommy was here in the same capacity,” Moore said. “Tommy’s always been the same, looked the same and always had the same attitude. Tommy’s just real good for Northeastern High School.”

Even more incredible is that all of those years doing all of those different jobs for the school, he was not an employee.

“All this time, he wasn’t getting paid for this,” McGee said. “He was getting his checks for being a special needs person, but he was just volunteering his time and his energy and his love for the kids.

“He’s a legend and he deserves every bit of it. He could have set around on his butt and done nothing, but all he’s done is give to the schools and given to the kids.”

Long has worked many different odd jobs over the years to help take care of himself for many different people. His efforts have made him part of the family for many coaches over the years.

“He’s just sort of worked around and helped take care of himself,” Brinson said. “Different people have helped him out because he’s been such a help to them.”

Of course, the group of people he has helped the most are the kids who have played on the teams over the years. Those are the people Long really likes, according to Brinson.

“He really loves being around the kids,” Brinson said. “They mean a lot to him. Every time he sees my children, he’ll give them a hug or whatever. He remembers all of them it seems like. It’s been close to 60 years now he’s been helping those kids and doing anything he could for them. He’s been a big help to the school system, for sure.”

Now, Long has been helping out at the high schools in Pasquotank County for six decades, with no signs of stopping anytime soon.

“Anybody associated with anything for 60 years must really love it,” Northeastern JV football coach Bruce Phillips said. “My hat’s off to him.”